N.Y. Times Magazine: The HBO Auteur
New York Times Magazine has a mammoth feature on David Simon and his new HBO series ‘Treme” – the much talked-about, highly ambitious show which takes place three months after Hurricane Katrina.
(Watch a trailer for the show in the video player.)
“Given the role in which Simon himself has lately been cast by critics and viewers, expectations for ‘Treme’ couldn’t be higher,” writes Wyatt Mason.
Outside New Orleans, expectations for the show are particularly high after Simon scored a critical hit with “The Wire – a gritty, violent drama set in inner city Baltimore.
And many New Orleanians, who have often been let down by thier awkward, one-dimensional portrayals in film such as ‘The Big Easy’, are simultaneously leery and excited, especially with a subject as touchy and real as Hurricane Katrina.
Leery of the awful accents and cartoonish characters which permeate ‘The Big Easy,’ but, at the same time, the promise to get the city’s story – levee failures, broken promises, ruined lives – told properly entices the soul.
See full story
L.A. Times: A real-life 'Princess' talks fat, segregation -- and shares a recipe for gumbo
Creole chef extraordinaire Leah Chase was featured in The Los Angeles Times, dishing on Disney’s “The Princess and the Frog,” her history in New Orleans and, most importantly, gives her recipe for gumbo.
Chase ended up being the inspiration for Disney’s first American American princess.
“We spent a wonderful evening with Leah at her restaurant,” said the filmmakers, “where we enjoyed not only her mouthwatering Creole cuisine, but her warmth as a she shared the story of her life and her philosophy of food bringing people together. She is one of America’s great ladies.”
Her restaurant, heavily damaged during Hurricane Katrina, only serves a lunch buffet, but Chase told the Times she hopes to offer dinner soon.
Discussing the restaurant as a meeting place during the Civil Rights movement and serving Barack Obama as he campaigned for the presidency, she even gave the Times a gumbo recipe.
So how has Leah Chase adapted to a more health conscious New Orleans? Is she changing the menu or ingredients?
“Q: So I gather no one has asked you about cutting out trans fats?
“LC: I go to the grocery, and if I see no fats on the label, I leave it on the shelf. I don’t know what the devil they did to take the fat out.”
See full interview and gumbo recipe
Kentucky coach loves New Orleans, Payton’s prowess
While ticket sales have been lackluster at the New Orleans Arena as the city holds the first round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament, despite hosting a No. 1 seed, Kentucky, Wildcat coach John Calipari professes a deep love for the city and an appreciation for the Saints, nonetheless.
In a blog in The New York Times, Calipari said he even allowed his players to take in Bourbon Street and the French Quarter while in town.
The coach saved his greatest praise of the Saints, the impact of the Super Bowl win on New Orleans and Sean Payton’s gutsy calls: “Who needed the Super Bowl win more than New Orleans?” Calipari said. “And it happened. And you had a coach who was so aggressive, I love him. Went for a fourth down. What are you doing? You can’t do this. Onside kick? Is this guy crazy? I love this guy, and they did it.”
